Awkward Office Encounters
by Silver-Eyed-Rukia
Summary: Office(HumanGems)!AU. Due to a broken down air conditioner on a scorching hot day the computers' overheated systems need fixing. Luckily for everyone a blonde technician is up for the job, but unbeknowst to them the IT nerd turns out to be someone they didn't expect her to be, especially not Lapis who kind of asked her out on a date already.
1. Embarrassment of the day

**Awkward Office Encounters  
**

 **Part 1 of 3  
**

by

 _Silver-Eyed Rukia_

 **Rated:** T

 **Pairing:** Lapidot (hinted)

 **Note:** Please ignore any mistakes. Or point them out and correct me, whatever you prefer.

* * *

Cover art by: **scribble-box** on tumblr (scribble-box. tumblr. com)

* * *

The moment the dark-haired rookie stepped foot out of the elevator and into the office she felt like she had just ran face first into a brick wall. The heat that greeted her felt so dense that she was playing with the idea of trying to cut it with a knife just to see if it worked but ultimately decided against it and instead opted on heading straight towards her desk and the small desk fan she knew was waiting for her. She already heard Amethyst and Pearl arguing before she could see them and when she rounded the corner to enter their only with partitions separated office area she immediately had to stifle her laughter upon seeing why the pair was arguing.

"Amethyst, I can't believe you went through my things without asking _again_!"

The short, stocky woman with the long, flowing hair rolled her eyes and gave the rookie a short wave as she entered before her attention returned to the tall agent in front of her.

"Well, excuuuuse me P but it's not my fault the air conditioning decided to take a dump on one of the hottest days of the month. I forgot my deodorant and I bet you don't want me smelling like I just finished wrestling with Jasper the entire day, eh?" Her full lips turned into a smirk when she saw the strawberry-blonde throwing her arms into the air in frustration before groaning out a "Fine" in accepted defeat. Amethyst finished applying the roll-on she had "borrowed" from Pearl's desk and grinned before tossing the container into one of her already overflowing drawers.

Garnet, who had watched the exchange in silence, looked over to the dark-haired woman and nodded in acknowledgement at the "Good morning, boss" directed her way. Lapis Lazuli was the newest addition to her well-functioning team and even though she had been coming here for over two months now she was still testing the capabilities of the rookie when they were out on the field. The tallest of the four stood from her chair and walked around her desk, opting on leaning against it to position herself more to the center of the office and get everyone's attention.

"I got word from Director Diamond that our new forensic scientist is scheduled to arrive today. She's fresh out of University, has a master's degree in forensic science and an already too long to count list of other scientific and technological achievements." The dark-skinned woman looked at her team before dropping the last bit of information she deemed necessary to share with them. "And she's 23."

Pearl's surprised "What?" was quickly drowned out by Amethyst's loud laughter, followed by a snarky "She's even younger than you, rookie!" directed at Lapis who was still somewhat awkwardly standing in front of her desk. She tried to force down the blush rising in her cheeks, silently thankful that she had opted on wearing a skirt on this really hot day instead of her preferred jeans before she finally went around the piece of furniture and placed her backpack on top of it before sitting down. Only for her to jump back into a standing position with a yelp when her bare legs came in contact with another person's skin, eyes darting to the leg area beneath her desk to see someone crawling around the floor with various cables and wires surrounding them.

"Oh yeah I totally forgot to tell you, rookie. The IT department sent us the head of their nerd brigade to fix our overheated systems," the shortest of the team grinned and pointed at the person under Lapis' desk. "Hopefully you didn't choose your skimpy underwear today." Pearl snorted and quickly hid her face behind one of her fashion magazines while Garnet only shook her head, the tiniest hint of a smile tugging at the corner of her mouth.

The tanned woman's embarrassment quickly turned into anger and she grabbed the poor technician's shirt, practically dragging them out from beneath her desk and lifting them into a standing position in front of her. She was just about to unleash her unbridled rage, which in all honesty was just embarrassment but she had a really bad temper, when she noticed that the person wasn't a guy, but rather a somewhat small, blonde woman with glasses sitting atop of her messy, barely in a ponytail contained hair, looking at the dark-haired agent with frightfully widened eyes.

"I didn't see anything, I swear", she blurted out, palms facing her captor's front in an attempt to show that she wasn't trying to do anything. Amethyst, who had watched the entire scene unfold, was already lying on her desk from laughter while their boss had quietly returned to her duties without uttering a single word at the exchange and even Pearl was still audibly giggling behind her magazine.

"No, I wasn't your fault, I thought you were a…well, a guy. Most of the people they send us from IT are guys so… sorry", Lapis said before letting go of the poor woman's shirt, blushing slightly when she noticed two deep emerald irises still looking at her. Damn, this girl was beautiful, even if she looked like she was having a really bad hair day. Her eyes unconsciously ran the technician up and down, noticing that despite it being such a hot day she was wearing a long-sleeved shirt and an ordinary pair of black jeans, both a bit ruffled up from scooting around on the floor for who knows how long.

"Yo nerd, what's your name?" Amethyst asked and wiggled her eyebrows at the rookie, making kissy faces behind the blonde's back. Said woman turned around shortly after the special agent had stopped with the ridiculous faces, obviously highly uncomfortable with being so close to a total stranger before answering.

"P-Peridot, ma'am."

"Ma'am?!"

This time Pearl couldn't hold it in anymore. She let the magazine fall flat on her desk before giving a laugh, looking at her shorter teammate rather smugly when she saw that Amethyst was clearly not amused by that comment.

"Her? _Ma'am_? Not in a million years."

The pair sparked another heated discussion and even though Peridot was highly confused about it she certainly appreciated having the attention lifted from her. She sighed and wiped at her forehead, gloved hands itching to finish her work and get back to her new workplace when she realized that she was still standing in front of the stranger and that the space between them was still so small that she could _still_ smell her rather intoxicating perfume.

"Uhm…can I resume my previous task now?"

Lapis blinked, having spaced out looking at the adorable woman in front of her and just nodded dumbly as she watched her finish fixing some wiring or whatever it was she was doing before she crawled out from beneath the desk again but this time, instead of nearly being pressed against the rookie, she opted on standing in front of the desk from the other side. The rest of the team, minus their boss who was honestly just used to this commotion by now, was still caught in their heated argument and Lapis used the distraction to talk to the blonde woman in private for a moment. She felt like an utter ass for being so rude to her without any reason.

"Hey, uhm, Peridot was it, right? Look, I'm really sorry about earlier and I would like to make up for it. Do you like Mexican food? I know a really good restaurant downtown if you're interested."

The blonde scratched her head and finally pulled her glasses down onto her face, nodding before looking at the slightly taller woman with a crooked smile. "Affirmative. I shall inform you about my contact information after your regular work schedule."

Lapis raised an eyebrow at the odd speech pattern and the fact that this woman was wearing long clothing _and_ gloves on a scorching hot day but decided to not say anything about it. Yet. She wanted to get the date over with first. ' _Wait,_ date?'

"I'll be here until around 8. I have to finish some reports, so…I'll see you later, then?"

Peridot nodded and blushed before walking out of the office area, her messy blonde shock of hair disappearing out of sight when she entered the elevator that would take her down to the basement. The dark-haired woman sighed and plopped down on her chair, a ghost of a smile visible on her lips when she realized that she was going to have a hopefully nice dinner with a really cute blonde. She had a weak spot for fair-haired women.

"Hey rookie, you really hit it off with the nerd", Amethyst snickered and made a rather vulgar gesture involving two of her fingers and her tongue before Garnet smacked the special agent upside the head after having gotten up from her chair to get more coffee from the coffee shop just outside the base.

"Uncalled for."

"Heh, sorry boss."

A cleanly shaven but generally unkempt looking man interrupted the conversation with a fake cough, having entered the office without anyone noticing, and instantly earned four different types of glares directed at him that he seemingly ignored with ease.

"I'm Lars from IT. We had some hardware problems until now so we couldn't send anyone up here to help with your overheating problem. I got a few minutes to check up on it now though."

Pearl stood from her chair and eyed the young looking man before pointing at the wiring covering nearly their entire floor.

"The problem has already been fixed by a charming young woman from your department minutes ago, we don't need your assistance."

"Woman?" Lars raised an eyebrow. "We don't have any females in my department, but if your problem's fixed I don't need to waste my time up here any longer." He shrugged before leaving as quietly as he had entered, leaving at least 3 of the special agents utterly confused.

"If Peri-whatever her name is wasn't from the IT department, then where the heck did she come from?"

Just as the leader of the team was about to leave the office and finally get the coffee she had gotten up for in the first place she turned around and addressed her entire team, face nearly unreadable behind her trademarked pair of shades.

"The new forensic scientist's name is Peridot by the way. I forgot to mention it."

Just as Garnet exited the with partitions separated office she heard a crash from where Amethyst had fallen off her chair in laughter at the horrified expression on their youngest team member's face, followed by Lapis' devastated exclamation of "I just made a fool out of myself in front of a genius. I just asked her out on a date, too!" The elevator arrived and the boss stepped inside, grinning when the doors closed with a ding.

"This is going to be _really_ interesting."

* * *

 **A/N:** The whole idea and the characters are losely based off NCIS (Naval Criminal Investigative Service), one of my all time favourite TV shows.

If anyone watches it, Garnet is the boss like Gibbs, who loves coffee, protects her team and doesn't use more words than necessary. Amethyst is the joker like Tony, annoying her teammates with her childish humour but deep down she is very loyal and has a heart of gold. Pearl is a bit like Kate and a bit like Ziva, she cares a lot about what people think of her and how she looks but she can be absolutely lethal and is a quick thinker in dangerous situations. Lapis is more Ziva than Kate, but also kind of a mix of both, she has a really bad temper, being the newest agent she also relies on the others but she is a strong and very proud woman. Peridot is the awkward geek like McGee who aced through school like a child prodigy but lacks social skills but has a very upbeat personality when she talks about things she loves like Abby. Plus she loves forensics and science. I hope the explanations are at least a little helpful for anyone who doesn't know the show :)

* * *

I couldn't get this idea out of my head so I just had to write it down. It wasn't supposed to be more than a one-shot actually but I think this won't be enough to explain everything so I decided to make it a two-shot. First time writing an AU for Steven Universe so I hope it isn't too bad.

 **Phrase of the Day  
**

We sometimes encounter people, even perfect strangers, who begin to interest us at first sight, somehow suddenly, all at once, before a word has been spoken.

~Fyodor Dostoevsky

 **If you liked it, please** **REVIEW**.

No flaming please.


	2. When your mouth runs off

**Awkward Office Encounters  
**

 **Part 2 of 3  
**

by

 _Silver-Eyed Rukia_

 **Rated:** T

 **Pairing:** Lapidot (hinted)

 **Note:** Please ignore any mistakes. Or point them out and correct me, whatever you prefer.

* * *

Blue eyes blinked tiredly against the bright glare of the monitor, darting to the right to check the time before settling back on the opened doc-file taunting her with its still empty pages. It was well past 9 o'clock and the last remnants of the afternoon heat still clung to the air with fierce determination even though the air conditioning had been fixed somewhere around lunch, when the team had been out on an investigation. Well, the three senior members at least. The rookie had been stuck in the office, writing and finishing up her reports and supplying her teammates with nutrition and beverages which mainly consisted of coffee and a variety of burritos from the food truck just outside the base.

Lapis rubbed her stiff neck before stretching her tired muscles, sighing when she felt a satisfying pop. She was already _way_ behind her schedule for the day and the utter lack of motivation wasn't exactly helping her get out of the office anytime soon. She took a small break and leaned back in her chair, eyes wandering through the almost empty office. Pearl had already gone home for the day, eager to get out her clothes after getting dumped into a fountain by an escaping suspect. Amethyst was currently on the phone trying to reach an informant for their current case, curling a strand of hair in between her fingers with her free hand while resting her legs atop of her desk. Garnet was attending to _boss stuff_ as the Latina had called it when Lapis had asked about her whereabouts and she had decided not to dwell on it and ask more questions than necessary. Their boss wasn't a woman of many words, but she always made sure to keep everyone up to date about everything important, even director business.

Her thoughts circled through all of today's events before they got stuck on a certain incident shortly after she had gotten to work that morning. She was still embarrassed about it, mind you, seeing that she had been acting kinda rude towards the newest addition to the team after all. The blonde had probably gone home by now, seeing that the usual work shift ended hours ago. Lapis sighed and rested her cheek against her hand, looking at the screen without really seeing what was on it. She liked how the woman's eyes had twinkled with what she assumed to be anticipation, how green they had looked with the sun illuminating them, like emeralds embedded into a smooth marble surface. Her pale skin was dotted with the tiniest of freckles atop her cheeks, a detail the rookie had caught only because they had been standing so close to each other. And even though her hair had looked like she fell asleep with it wet and only 5 minutes to spare for fixing it in the morning it had given her overall appearance a dash of cheekiness, a wild and untamable mane topping off an overall well-kempt and tidy exterior.

"Yo rookie, mind going dirty places?"

Lapis snapped out of her daze and looked over to the smaller woman grinning at her, eyebrows wiggling and one eye winking at her as if she had caught her reading a dirty magazine. The long haired agent was fun to be around with but for crying out loud she could be such a brat sometimes. And the tanned woman's face apparently mirrored that train of thought because a moment later Amethyst just gave a reassuring wave of her hand before getting up and walking over to her opposite's desk, grin boiled down to an almost melancholic smile.

"Cool your temper Lapis, I was only joking. Just noticed you smiling really dumbly and the only good thing that happened to you today was your run-in with Queen Nerd." She watched how the woman's expression shifted from annoyed to a mixture between embarrassed and happy before ripping out the computer's power cable and turning off Lapis' desk lamp. "Tell you what buddy, you go have fun with our newest addition and I'll finish your report for you. And no buts! I'm expecting a donut and my favourite coffee blend from Sadie's place for breakfast tomorrow as thanks."

Lapis rose from her seat, quickly stuffed her necessities into her bag and turned off her monitor before giving the Latina a friendly pat on the back.

"Thanks Amethyst, I owe you one."

The woman smirked and shrugged before sitting back at her desk. "Yeah, you owe me breakfast. And make sure you get laid or something, you know I hate writing reports!"

As much as Amethyst acted like a child with her crude humor and vulgar gestures most of the time, deep down everyone appreciated her heart of pure gold and right now Lapis couldn't be happier to have been assigned to this famous team with its cast of amazing agents.

* * *

It was probably just her imagination but the dark-haired woman could have sworn that the further down the elevator took her the more the air started smelling like antisceptics and was filled with what reminded her of the various labs and doctor's offices she had been to in her life. They all smelled _off_. She wasn't faint-hearted or didn't like the sight of gore or the scent of decay but chemicals always got to her, irritating her heightened senses. Lapis shook off her discomfort when the elevator gave off its distinctive _ding_ , signalizing her arrival on her designated level.

She had been on the lower floors before, back when she had first been introduced to the team and been given a tour around the building and its different rooms and facilities. She vaguely remembered seeing the forensic laboratory, void of life and any personal items, just filled with machinery and computers. She knew why and even though it had happened before she got her initiation a few months back, the hurt from losing someone from their team still ran deep and filling that void would be difficult, if not entirely impossible. Rose Quartz Universe had been the heart of the team and now that she was gone…Lapis shook her head. She didn't want to dwell on it and Peridot was probably already feeling anxious about stepping into such huge footsteps. If she even knew about them.

Loud music entered her ears as the tanned agent stepped out of the elevator, the source obviously being the forensic laboratory that she was currently approaching, one hesitant step after the other. If she had to say why she was feeling so nervous she probably wouldn't have been able to give a satisfying answer aside from "embarrassment" or something similarly lame. Lapis took a deep breath and held it before peeking into the lab, the faint noises of the machinery humming barely audible due to the rather loud volume of the music blasting through the room. A blonde shock of hair gently bobbed up and down as the scientist moved her body along to the rhythm while being fully entranced with whatever she was currently doing at her computer-equipment stuff. Lapis really wasn't tech savvy and her teammates always made sure to rub that into her face any chance they got.

The sight that lay before her was entrancing: Peridot looked utterly lost in her work and the music surrounding her that the rest had just...disappeared. Until she spun around on one of her heels, probably to get some evidence or equipment from the desk behind her, and realized that she had been watched for an unknown period of time. Lapis finally released the breath she didn't know she had been holding before awkwardly stepping forward, leaving enough space between them for privacy but standing close enough as to not make the following conversation awkward. Or any more than it would already be.

The blonde fished a remote out of her labcoat pocket and lowered the volume drastically before trying her best at fighting the rising blush in her cheeks down, to a certain degreee at least, before speaking.

"Stalking is punishable by law and disrespecting an individual's privacy is equally immoral."

Lapis could do nothing but blink rather dumbly for a second before her brain caught up with the words spoken and was able to form a reply.

"What?"

No one said her reply would be smart though.

Peridot pushed her glasses up to rest atop of her messy blonde locks before motioning for the agent to take a seat at her desk, an offer the older woman took but instead of choosing the chair she opted on sitting on the desk, slender legs almost tauntingly crossed to prevent another underwear revealing incident like earlier.

"That was my rather poor attempt at breaking the ice and it seemingly went right over your head, I apologize. I am...not the most socially adept person alive as our first encounter must have already told you."

"We were both at fault for that one", Lapis said as her eyes looked over to the big screen bolted to the wall opposite of all her monitors, taking in the details on it before returning her attention back to the scientist, "so we should just put that behind us. Are you already working on a case? That picture looks familiar."

Peridot let out a small "oh!" before she resumed her earlier position in front of her computer, fingers nearly flying over the keyboard as she pulled up her newest results on the screen. "I took the liberty to start researching the evidence from all the piled up cases from the last couple weeks. A blood sample result just came in." She stopped for a moment to enlargen the picture of the person, grinning like she had just won a prize before announcing the name out loud.

"Victor Burk, the suspect of the locked room case. Team Garnet was in charge, the case was lead by Senior Special Agent Pearl due to her quick grasp of the situation when the crime scene was first examined. Her guess on how the locked room phenomenon came to be was impressive, even if it lacked one last piece of the puzzle." The blonde pointed a gloved finger at the screen, a detail that didn't go unnoticed by Lapis, before concluding her speech. "And that piece is the DNA evidence from Victor Burk."

Blue eyes stared directly into green ones as the owner rose from her seated position on the desk, slowly closing the distance between herself and the now seemingly confused and slightly worried looking scientist.

"How do you know all this?"

"I read a few weeks worth of reports."

Lapis narrowed her eyes in silent suspicion, obviously unconvinced by that simply exclamation.

"A few weeks worth of reports in one day? And you managed to remember all of them. How surprisingly convinient."

Instead of shrinking away like Lapis had anticipated, the blonde woman instead jabbed a gloved finger into the taller agent's chest, face now visibly annoyed at the unvoiced yet baseless accusation.

"I managed to get this job because I qualified for it, Lazuli. I wasn't given this opportunity, I earned it. And if you really want to know how I managed to remember you might want to consider a trait called photographic memory."

The last part felt like a verbal slap to the face that sucessfully managed to get Lapis off her bad temper induced rant and made the rookie run a hand over her face in an attempt to not punch the nearest wall to let out her frustration about her stupid behaviour.

"Investigative trait, my bad. I guess the boss' rules are starting to rub off on me." She gave a weird chuckle before explaining what rules she meant to the blonde that seemed to be less upset with her now after the explanation. The air was still thick, albeit less hostile than before, and a few heartbeats of awkward silence only broken by the still barely audible music filled the room before a sudden noise startled them both, making the scientist flinch outwardly while Lapis only held her breath for a moment. She blinked as she watched the smaller woman fumble with her gloved fingers and her phone that had been resting inside her other labcoat pocket before stepping a bit closer, holding out her open palm with a now almost mischievous smile playing around her lips.

"Was that the original Super Mario Bros. coin collecting sound?"

Peridot looked utterly dumbstruck as she handed the object to the agent, knowing that it was a helpful gesture. "You recognized it?"

Lapis gave her a small grin as she swiped the lock on her opposite's phone to the side without looking at the message, respecting the privacy of the other too much to butt into it. Amethyst would have probably read through the entirety of her message history. She handed it back before giving a shrug that she hoped looked more cool than as awkward as she kinda felt right now.

"Yeah, the NES was my first gaming console. The old thing is still sitting at my apartment waiting to be played but the job's been keeping me pretty busy lately."

The dark-haired agent could have sworn that the emerald eyes of the scientist were sparkling at the mention of Nintendo's first gaming console, earlier dispute all but forgotten as she wordlessly accepted her phone, quickly read the message and stuffed the device back into her pocket.

"I've been _dying_ to play my NES but I had to leave all my stuff back in Massachusetts and it won't get here until maybe next month!"

Realizing her sudden change in demeanor Peridot shrinked back into herself a bit before she gave Lapis a crooked smile, scratching the back of her unruly mane. "Sorry, nerd alert."

The rookie snorted as she tried her best to keep the laughter from bubbling out of her mouth and she even covered it with one of her hands as she saw the scientist's head grow ever redder around her cheeks. She quickly coughed, masking her mirth with a trained expression of professionalism, before she reduced her happiness to a toothless smile.

"Sorry, it's just funny how your entire demeanor changes from articulated to exited when you talk about things you're passionate about like your work or video games. It's actually kinda cute."

"Thanks. For that _and_ your help with my phone. I usually don't check it at work but I've been trying to find an apartment so I set up an automatic notification for every new free location available around here. These darn things make operating my phone nearly impossible though, I might need to alter their functionality", the blonde murmured to the end of her sentence as she waved her hands around for emphasis. She noticed the look of barely restrained curiosity and weighed her options before deciding that showing the agent now would mean that she didn't have to do it later. Peridot carefully started peeling off the leather glove on her right hand to reveal heavily scarred skin and only three remaining fingers, the rest replaced by some sort of robotic looking contraption.

Flexible looking hinges of sorts ran from the wrist strap over the back of her hand towards the mechanical fingers that had replacement her missing middle and index finger, some parts of it coloured in a shade very similar to the emerald green of the blonde's eyes.

She caught the look Lapis couldn't ban fast enough from her face and quickly put the glove back on, mood visibly dampened.

"They are called X-fingers and I do not wish for your pity nor did I ask for it."

"I'm sorry, I just...", Lapis groaned before running a hand through her dark locks, teeth grinding together as she yet again tried very hard not to let out her temper on inoccent walls. "I'm an investigator for crying out loud I should not be surprised by seeing amputated limbs. I just keep screwing things over with you, why did you even agree to go out with me in the first place?"

Peridot had noticed the lack of a "how" concerning her horribly scarred hand and the acknowledgement that her opposite was being thoughtful of her feelings made her both feel relieved and thankful. She put her glasses back unto her nose before giving a lame shrug, crooked grin revealing an unnaturally sharp canine now back in place.

"You seemed interesting enough to catch my attention, that's more than most people and things accomplish nowadays." She also knowingly ignored Lapis' rather suggestive "to go out with me" that had lacked the crucial detail of a "to eat" behind it.

"Oh gee, thanks."

They both fell into a fit of chuckles and quiet laughter before Peridot clapped her hands together, a motion that made the lights go out while all the necessary machines kept running and she gave an almost over-confident smirk as she ushered the somewhat stunned rookie out of her lab.

"I've had some free time in between my research today. Now I'll finally take you up on your offer. I do like Mexican food and I've skipped lunch to read all of your reports, Lazuli."

Said agent was happy the now darkened room hid her growing blush because she knew her reports were utterly atrocious. Or they must be for someone like Peridot. Oh boy this would be one hell of an interesting date.

' _Wait, when did this turn from eating together into a date?_ '

That was a mystery only Lapis' heart seemed to know and as of now it wasn't ready to solve it just yet.

* * *

Well...I decided to turn this into 3 chapters? Because I am too unfocused to write something for one story only and I don't want to wait any longer with an update, sorry ._. Anyways, hope you'll enjoy it and next time there WILL be the actual date in the chapter :)

 **Phrase of the Day  
**

"Thank you" is the best prayer anyone could say. I say that one a lot. Thank you expresses extreme gratitude, humility, understanding.

~Alice Walker

 **If you liked it, please** **REVIEW**.

No flaming please.


	3. Drunk confessions of the best kind

**Awkward Office Encounters  
**

 **Part 3 of 3  
**

by

 _Silver-Eyed Rukia_

 **Rated:** M (mention of self-harm and amputation)

 **Pairing:** Lapidot (hinted, very very obviously hinted you can't possibly miss it)

 **Note:** Please ignore any mistakes. Or point them out and correct me, whatever you prefer.

* * *

The fresh air being blown their way after they had exited the building was a welcome change of temperature, ridding their lungs of the stuffy office air that had accumulated over the span of the ridiculously hot day. Lapis caught her smaller companion lifting her face against the breeze in close-eyed bliss and couldn't keep the faintest of smiles from tugging at the corners of her mouth. The notion looked so peaceful, carefree even, that it immediately reminded the rookie of their age difference of roughly 4 years. Judging by appearance and behaviour alone she would never have guessed the scientist to be a mere 23 years of age and it made her wonder why she was so utterly entranced by Peridot, seeing that she never really had had a thing for younger women in the past.

The native-born Hawaiian had apparently stared long enough for the blonde to re-open her eyes and notice the silent check-out of her expression, and for a moment she was torn between feeling incredibly smug or slightly embarrassed before the decision was taken from her, the dark-skinned woman's locks swaying at the rather forceful turn of the head, the heat in her cheeks hidden by both the darkness of the night and the tone of her skin.

"You said you were still looking for an apartment around here", Lapis began before clearing her throat, cursing silently at the way her voice had cracked at the beginning of her sentence. ' _Keep your shit together, if Amethyst saw you right now she'd degrade you to something even less than a rookie._ ' She took a calming breath before finishing her sentence, shooting Peridot a glance out of the corner of her eye. "Any luck with that yet?"

Blonde locks swayed as their owner shook her head no, a gloved hand rising to her face to push her glasses back up the bridge of her nose.

"Not yet, no. I've been staying at a hotel not too terribly far away but the bus drive down here does get quite taxing, especially when I have the luck of getting stuck in morning traffic."

Her green eyes locked onto the in goosebumps raised skin of the agent's arm as a rather chilling breeze swept over them and she wordlessly peeled her arms out of her jacket before handing it to the black-haired woman, huffing out a breath of annoyance at the somewhat dumbstruck look on her face.

"You're cold, I'm not. Just accept it with a "wow thanks" or something and don't even start to complain about not needing it. People have killed for lesser reasons than mild irritation."

Lapis suppressed the snort bubbling up her throat and rolled her eyes before accepting the offered jacket anyways, slipping into its pre-warmed sleeves with a thankful smile playing around her lips.

"Wow, thanks. But your threat falls kinda short considering that you are talking to an agent of the Navy and a former police officer." Her smile split into a full-out smirk at the raised eyebrow shot in her direction and she tested the waters with another teasing remark. "Plus you're also kind of short so that's two reasons why I don't feel very threatened right now."

The pair had crossed the majority of the parking lot throughout their banter and they came to a halt in front of an old Ford Mustang in a vibrant, even in the dim light of the streetlamps glistening blue colour. Lapis was just about to turn the key and open the lock when the scientist suddenly spoke up again, one corner of her mouth tugged up in a toothless grin.

"I could kill you without leaving any forensic evidence behind. You'd be wise to think twice about not taking me for full."

Thankful for the car separating them the rookie slipped into the driver's seat wordlessly, swallowing hard at the harsh reality of the blonde's sentence before leaning over to allow her access to the passenger seat. The silence that filled the time it took them to get settled and ready to leave wasn't unpleasant, but not entirely comfortable either, both not sure where to draw the line with their jokes and humour just yet. Granted, Peridot _had_ told her that she wasn't the most socially adept adult out there but Lapis didn't want her to feel awkward about being who she was around her. So instead of voicing her thoughts the agent remained quiet, unaware of the nervous wringing of the scientist's fingers in her lap and the thankful prayer to the heavens spoken inside her head.

The engine roared to life so forcefully that it shook the whole chassis before the car was eased into first gear and maneuvered out of the Navy yard's parking lot, the engine bubbling happily at being used after almost an entire day of sitting in the heat.

"Cool."

Lapis eyed her passenger for a moment before returning her gaze to the road ahead, making a right turn at the next intersection before coming to a stop at a red light. She watched in amusement as Peridot's expression turned into one of almost childlike wonder at the winder she used to open her window, running her gloved hands over the leather interior draped over almost everything inside the car.

"You like it?"

Nodding the blonde lowered the window further and smiled faintly, enjoying the somehow calming rumbling of the car now filtering through the open crack.

"I'm not huge on cars but you have a really nice one. The sounds it makes remind me of my laboratory. It's…comforting, I like it."

The rookie hummed and kicked the car back into first gear as the light turned green, already eyeing the streets for a parking spot not too far away from the restaurant.

"Ford Mustang. Belonged to my dad and he kinda passed it on to me after he retired. He always kept it in top condition until his arthritis robbed him of almost everything he used to enjoy. Said it broke his heart to see his life-long dream slowly start to gather rust and I just couldn't refuse his offer to give it to me under the promise of keeping it in shape, you know? The things we do for the people we love, really. I don't even care much about cars but this darn vehicle has brought me from A to B so many times I just cannot _not_ love it."

"I understand that", Peridot muttered, a sound barely audible above the roaring of the engine as Lapis sped up to catch the last few seconds of the already yellow light. Her eyes fell down to the gloved fingers now resting idly atop her thighs and the Hawaiian mentally slapped herself after her own eyes had followed Peridot's gaze.

"I didn't mean to-"

"I know, don't mention it."

And with that, silence settled between them once more, awkwardness lessened slightly by the faint smile curving the blonde's lips upwards ever so slightly. They came to a halt just a couple feet away from the restaurant, late hour ridding the streets of most people still sober enough to drive. Lapis parked the car and slipped out of her seat in a fluid, practiced motion and chuckled quietly when she saw her companion all tangled up in her seatbelt. She helped the smaller woman rid herself of the restricting contraption before holding a respectful hand out for her to take, calloused fingers facing the dark sky above.

"May I?"

Lapis could have sworn that she heard the woman blush as she uttered a "thank you" at the motion before she accepted the outstretched hand with some hesitance, pulling her out of the seat and nearly against the front of the dark-skinned ex-officer accidentally. The gloves were smooth and cold against her warmed fingers and she gave the appendages she knew rest under them a small squeeze before letting go again, leading the way into the brightly illuminated establishment. Peridot wasn't sure if she had imagined the squeeze or not, nearly complete numbness mixed with adrenaline making her remaining fingers tingle at the thought, but her mind was swept clean of the aforementioned thoughts the moment her feet stepped into the restaurant.

Authentic, Mexican music caressed her ears as her eyes were busy taking in all the flowers and colours and lights illuminating the inside like an explosion of fireworks. People of several different ethnicities were drinking and eating together in groups ranging from small to bigger than she thought humanly possible to fit all inside one booth. The bar was occupied save for a lone barstool sticking out like a sore thumb, but it was quickly filled when another man came almost dancing into the establishment, behaviour and attitude indicating him being a regular here.

Peridot had been so entranced by the atmosphere that only a physical tug at her arm made her snap out of her daze and she quickly followed her new co-worker up a flight of stairs, feeling both thankful and sad about the quieter and less extreme looking second floor they now found themselves in. There were smaller booths scattered over this floor with only a handful of people already filling three or four of them, creating a generally more peaceful but no less authentic atmosphere. She slipped into the booth opposite of the dark-haired agent and immediately picked up the menu, mostly so that her hands had something to do, helping her rid herself of some of her anxiety. Peridot's attention snapped from the appetizers towards her voice as Lapis began speaking, green eyes losing themselves into the darkest blue she had ever seen.

"Do you like it?"

"It's…amazing, really. The atmosphere's great and I hope the food is as good as you said it would be."

"I owe you another dinner if that happens to be the case", Lapis smirked, trying to sound as confident as she not at all felt before eyeing the way Peridot's untamable mane made her look adorably disheveled. "I can recommend the street tacos, if you're able to handle a little spice."

If Peridot was being honest with herself she had to admit that she had never been very good at picking up hints when it came to flirting, or dating in general, so she only nodded in understanding before folding the menu close and placing it back into its stand, mind running wild trying to figure out if that had been a hidden flirt or not. The smirk was still in place when the blonde looked up so she quickly gave a painfully obvious smile of her own. ' _Definitely a flirt_.'

"The boss gave us some information about you", Lapis continued, seemingly undisturbed by the sudden commotion coming from the floor below, "but I would really like to know some things from you personally." Her foot grazed Peridot's faintly as she crossed her legs and leaned forward, placing her chin into the open palm of her hand.

"If you're allowed to share, that is."

"You make it sound like _I_ am the super special agent and not just a science and tech nerd lucky enough to have been given this job", the smaller of the two replied with a tone in her voice that Lapis couldn't quite name, leaving a bad taste in her mouth. "But just asking questions is somewhat boring, how about we turn it into a game?"

Arching an eyebrow Lapis sat up a bit straighter, dark blue eyes twinkling mischievously at the proposition.

"Well you know that I like games, so do your worst Peridot. But don't forget that I am an investigator."

Her name on the woman's tongue felt both foreign and oddly comforting and Peridot wondered if she was this casual with all of her co-workers before she shook the thought from her head, first question already forming inside her head.

"What's your favourite colour?"

Utterly unprepared for such an easy and simple question Lapis blinked before giving a short laugh, enjoying how the tips of Peridot's ears always turned red whenever the woman was nervous or embarrassed.

"Of all the possibilities you chose my favourite colour, how curious. It's green though", she said before her smirk simmered down into an almost melancholic smile. "It's calming to look at. They had us pick colours during anger management classes and the one that worked best for me was green." Lapis shrugged before continuing.

"But that's a tearjerker for another time, wouldn't want to ruin this and scare you off on our very first day together. My turn now, isn't it?"

Peridot, fully aware of how intensely the rookie had gazed into her eyes that were very obviously green, swallowed the growing lump in her throat in fearful anticipation as Lapis hummed softly, wasting time in search for something to ask the scientist. When the question didn't turn out to be the one she expected she sighed in relief, fingers hidden under the table.

"Who was your first kiss with?"

And the redness returned to the top of Peridot's ear, much to the agent's delight. She gave a quick "thanks" in Spanish as one of the waitresses placed some tortilla chips and salsa on their table before popping one of them into her mouth, enjoying the spice exploding on her tongue as the blonde obviously weighted her words before uttering them.

"I…have not yet had my first kiss if parents don't count", she finally admitted before taking a chip and chewing on it carefully, testing the intensity of the sauce's heat before taking another. "I don't come across a lot of people that meet my preference in my line of work."

"Like…?"

Grateful for the lack of utter exasperation on Lapis' face Peridot shrugged before allowing a small grin to tug at her lips, trying to not sound as hopeful as she felt mumbling the next few words.

"There aren't a lot of women in the laboratories."

A silent "oh" formed on the dark-haired woman's lips before she mentally slapped herself yet again for naturally assuming that everyone she came across had the same preferences as her, given the fact that she was incredibly confident in her sexuality. But she understood and they both shared a look that conveyed just that, mutual understanding. Working in the police had its downsides as an openly homosexual woman after all.

Peridot was just about to ask her next question when a booming voice nearly startled her out of her seat before a tall, long-haired woman leaned against their table, amber eyes giving her a once-over before they came to rest on a now beaming Lapis.

"Jasper, I didn't know you worked today!"

Vitiligo. The skin condition sprang into the scientist's eyes immediately, making her hide her fingers even further beneath the table. It reminded her of her horribly scarred appendages and the fact that until know she had been rather successful with trying not to think about it. Zoning back into the here and now Peridot wiped the cold sweat from the back of her neck before focusing on the conversation between her co-worker and the woman not sitting right next her, nearly squeezing the much smaller woman against the wall.

"Who's the runt", the dark-skinned woman asked before an elbow to her ribs made her grumble, silently glaring daggers at the agent who was now rolling her eyes.

"Jasper, be nice. And that's Peridot, she's our new forensic scientist and I already found out that she could kill you without leaving any forensic evidence behind."

The woman in question gave an uncertain smile and a quiet "Hey" before Jasper's hand came reaching over the table, large, from her condition two-coloured fingers twitching slightly in anticipation.

"Sorry pal, name's Jasper. Nice to meet you Peridot."

Panic wrapped its cold, suffocating hands around the blonde's throat and squeezed it shut, making it incredibly difficult for her to keep her breathing steady and heart from beating ridiculously fast inside her chest. With her mind in disarray she desperately searched for anything to keep her anchored and her eyes fell on the now very worried expression of the Hawaiian who had noticed the sudden paleness washing over Peridot. Almost as if she had conveyed the silent plea for help with just that one gaze Lapis ushered her much taller friend out of the booth with an order of two mojitos and a share-size order of nachos after giving her a kiss on the cheek.

"I like you Jas but please stop scaring away all my friends would you?"

The mountain of a woman gave a short apology and patted the blonde's shoulder, knowingly ignoring the stiffness and small trembles she felt at the motion before disappearing down the stairs again. It wasn't even a second later that Lapis got up, around the table and into the same side of the booth Peridot was seated in and pulled her against her front. She ran her fingers through the wild mane soothingly and mumbled "it's okay" into the blonde's ear over and over again, helping her count and take her breaths to quell the rising anxiety currently crippling Peridot. It didn't take long, maybe just a couple minutes, before the trembles stopped and the smaller woman peeled herself out of the embrace, cheeks red from both adrenaline and embarrassment.

"Thanks. I don't know why I just freaked, I didn't even-", she started before the shake of Lapis' head cut her short, serene smile calming her further as the agent now put a respectful distance between them.

"You don't have to explain yourself and I won't probe either. I'm just glad it actually helped", she laughed quietly before resuming her earlier position. "I've had to do it twice to Amethyst and the only way to get her to calm down is to either smack her senseless or get up close and physical. I think you wouldn't have appreciated a slap so I went with option two."

"Appreciated", Peridot sighed before running her trembling hands over her face after placing her glasses atop of her now even messier hair. She was utterly mortified for nearly having a panic attack over a simple thing like a hand-shake, not even entirely sure what had triggered it in the first place. Maybe it was the idea of having to explain herself to a stranger, maybe it was just the entirety of the day's events suddenly coming down on her, she really didn't know. It was irrational and she hated it, that was all she knew.

Lapis was patient and waited for Peridot to collect herself, wordlessly popping another chip onto her mouth as she watched her co-worker place her gloved hands on the table instead of beneath it. Realization dawned on her and she had to bite her own tongue from yelling motivational speeches at the young woman.

"I won't judge you."

Confused Peridot put her glasses back on her nose and stared at Lapis.

"What?"

She unconsciously moved her hands to rest atop her thighs again but this time Lapis caught it. Before her fingers could even lift from the tabletop the rookie had claimed them between her own, warm flesh pressed against cool leather, the heat barely penetrating the partially numb fingers.

"I won't judge you for who you are, Peridot. I didn't back at your lab and I won't start now after I started getting to know you."

She could have sworn that she felt the soft pressure against her fingers and she curled them around Lapis' as tightly as she could, smiling when she did feel the weight of them through the thick material. It wasn't new, but it sure was rare. Who wants to hold the hands of a cripple, especially after having seen how scarred and deformed her hands were? This mystery of a woman, apparently.

Nodding in silent appreciation Peridot let go of the agent's hands reluctantly, missing how they fit between the space of her fingers almost perfectly. They sat in silence, only broken by the commotion from downstairs, until their food and drinks arrived. The waitress winked at Lapis as she placed the items down and tapped her fingers against the mojitos, grinning as she breathed a "these are on the house" a bit too flirtatiously at the rookie.

"Well you're certainly popular around here."

The dark-skinned woman nearly choked on her drink and glared at her opposite when she found her now grinning somewhat smugly over the rim of her own glass. The change of atmosphere felt good and Peridot was eternally grateful for the way the brunette had handled everything.

"I'm just good friends with the barkeeper, Jasper. She's Amethyst's so don't even think that way", she warned before taking another sip, raising an eyebrow when Peridot did the same and soon after started coughing violently.

"Too strong for you?"

"Just haven't had alcohol in a while. It's good though. I might have another one after this.

It didn't stop at just "another one".

An hour and three mojitos later the blonde was so intoxicated that every little thing made her burst into giggles. Lapis had noticed that after she had said the word "bubble" in reference to a case they had been working on a couple weeks back when Peridot had suddenly burst into a fit of almost hysterical giggling, spitting out a barely audible "you can't say bubble in an angry voice" before resting her head on her crossed arms on the table. Lapis sighed and placed enough money to pay her bill and cover the tip on the table before helping her companion out of the booth, trying to suppress the grin when she heard her drunken mumbles.

"You smell nice detective."

"Peridot, I'm a special agent, not a detective."

"Agent smagent who cares, if you always smell so good I never want to let go."

"And this is the part where we leave. Come on Peri, help me out a little so we can get you home."

Even though she hadn't planned for their dinner plans to end in one of them being drunk she certainly didn't complain either. Alcohol was freeing and as long as Peridot was a silly and happy drunk she had no issues with her letting lose, especially not after her emotional episode. They made it down the stairs and through the now nearly empty first floor without any incidents and Lapis gave a thankful nod when Jasper helped her get the now dozing blonde into her car, grinning and making kissy faces before disappearing into her restaurant again.

It wasn't until she had revved up the engine that realization hit her: she didn't know where Peridot's hotel was. Cursing quietly in her native tongue the dark-skinned woman looked at her co-worker, still dozing and pretty much knocked-out cold, before sighing and taking off towards her own apartment. She'd just have to let her sleep on her bed while she crashed on the couch. She really didn't look forward to that and neither did her back.

The trip was relatively quiet, filled by only the car rumbling happily and Peridot mumbling into her imaginary beard. Lapis swore she could hear her reciting the periodic table of the elements in alphabetic order but she had always been shit at chemistry so she wasn't entirely sure. The blonde woke up once briefly and told Lapis that she had seen Jasper riding a tiger into a sunset before she nodded off again, blissfully unaware of the barely contained laughter exploding out of the rookie. She would totally tell Jasper about this, that much was certain.

Shortly after the mirthful interaction they arrived at the Hawaiian's apartment complex and Lapis quickly parked her car into her own spot before making an attempt at waking up her companion, lightly shaking her shoulder and trying very hard not to stare at the slightly parted lips as her head turned her way.

"I studied for the test."

Snorting Lapis got out and raised an eyebrow when she saw Peridot doing the same, somewhat amazed at how steady she looked. Until the blonde emptied the alcohol and half a pound of nachos into a nearby trash can, groaning in misery once she was done feeling sick. Well, not as sick as before at least.

"End my pain please, who let me drink this much."

"Well the short nap and the good riddance surely seemed to have sobered you up enough", Lapis joked before guiding the younger woman towards the elevator and punching in the number of her floor. Her eyes rested on how the scientist pressed her forehead against the cold metal interior until a distinctive ding signaled their arrival. Now much more steady on her legs Peridot followed after the agent in silence, too tired and still too intoxicated to really ask any questions about where she was and why she was here. As long as she would inside a bed in the next few minutes she really didn't care.

The first room they entered seemed to be the living room. It wasn't huge but it wasn't too small either, with a comfortable looking couch placed in one corner opposite from the TV, gaming system buried beneath the table and a rather impressive looking piano taking up nearly the remaining space of the room. The walls were decorated with pictures of nature, ranging from the desert to the jungle and the depths of the ocean. Peridot was torn out of her reverie when Lapis directed her towards the bathroom with a bunch of spare clothing in her hands that she passed on to the blonde before disappearing in what she assumed to be the bedroom.

The bathroom was bigger than she had anticipated, judging by the size of the living room, and smelled of sandalwood and vanilla. She used the toilet before washing her hands and splashing some cold water unto her face, groaning when she noticed that she was still wearing her glasses. She removed them and placed them between a few bottles of body care products before moving to peel herself out of her current set of clothing, careful not to upset her stomach any further as she bent down. Peridot was dressed in a shirt and a pair of pajama pants after a couple minutes and stumbled out of the bathroom as her eyelids started falling close again, not caring about looking in the mirror or checking for anything in the process.

Lapis had changed into a crop top and a pair of boxers for sleeping, a fact Peridot only noticed when said woman nudged her away after she had fallen asleep leaning against the wall. She very obviously checked out the rookie's well trained midsection before she found herself being caught staring while Lapis led her into the bedroom, dimmed lights a welcome sight for the already painful throb behind the scientist's eyes.

"You can crash on my bed tonight, I'll take the couch. Got you a bucket and some water in case you feel sick again, I sadly can't provide a lovely trash can like the one in the parking lot."

Grumbling at the reminder Peridot only sat down on the bed and immediately laid back with her eyes closed, taking a deep breath that filled her lungs with the same, lovely scent that had clouded her senses earlier, when Lapis had carried her towards the car.

"You know, if you weren't drunk I'd say you look pretty darn cute all passed out like that."

Smooth leather wrapped around her wrist just as Lapis was about to rise from the bed, gloved fingers holding her in place as Peridot took another deep breath.

"Stay."

"Okay."

Not entirely sure what to do Lapis opted on sitting on the bed, a bit closer than an arm's length away from the blonde, with her legs crossed beneath her. She let her eyes wander over the sprawled out form of her co-worker until something caught her attention, unable to keep the gasp from slipping out her mouth at the sudden realization what it was. The noise was all it took to make the blonde snap her eyes open and sit up so quickly she took a moment to regain her senses, but when she did she sobered up quicker than she thought humanly possible.

"You saw them."

"That's why you were wearing long sleeves despite it being so hot today", Lapis trailed off before looking at Peridot's face, seeing how hurt and exposure turned her expression hard and almost bitter. Before she had time to say as much as a syllable Peridot had already backed herself against the headrest, green eyes resting on the floral pattern on the sheets.

"Two fuck-ups in one day, this must be a new record. Maybe now you understand how a 23-year-old has remained unkissed and partnerless all her life." The silence that followed was heavy in the tense atmosphere and Peridot clawed her fingers into the soft fabric she couldn't even feel, forcing her eyes shut as tears sprang into them. "It's beyond me why you are still sticking around after everything that happened today. Everyone else always bolts, why not you?"

The end of her sentence had almost been a shout, as if she wanted what she had said to happen, proving her right. It would make the rejection easier, more bearable, even though she had already let the charming, beautiful agent in further and faster than she had thought she would. The scars on her arms burned beneath Lapis' unreadable expression and it took Peridot every ounce of self-control to not cover them up, too proud to be ashamed of the marks of self-harm lining her upper arms.

"You told me to stay", was all the blonde received as an answer before Lapis inched closer, careful not to further frighten the already deeply emotional woman on her bed. "And I said I would. I don't break my promises."

"You didn't promise."

She smiled and looked Peridot straight into her eyes, own ones as deep and dark as the bottom of the ocean. "No, but to you it felt like I did."

She gently uncurled the blonde's fingers from the sheet and cradled them between her own, knowing fully well how much trust had been put in her when Peridot didn't pull away, even more so when she didn't face any rejection as she started carefully peeling the glove off of one of her hands. It was surprisingly easy considering what they covered and once the leather was stripped off and carefully placed on the nightstand Lapis turned her full attention to the hand inside her own, scarred and discoloured flesh a stark contrast against her intact and dark skin.

"You called them X-fingers, right?", she asked while she ran a finger over the contraption, curiosity and amazement painting a faint smile on her lips as examined it. "How do they work?"

No "how did you lose your fingers". No "why do you have self-harm marks all over your arms". No probing questions, no awkwardness, no hostility. It was everything Peridot had not expected and she found it increasingly more difficult to stay defensive and bitter when confronted with such an open-minded and loving individual and she absolutely hated how her touch left a tingling sensation in her almost numb fingers.

"The wristband keeps everything in place while the artificial fingers themselves are attached to what remains of my biological fingers. The more you are able to retain from the original limb the better they function. The joints adapt to the movement executed by the stump, they do not require electricity to function." She liked her lips nervously for a moment before slowly withdrawing her hand, unfamiliar with being touched so often and so frequently.

"I'm tired, can I have my hand back?"

A pang of guilt rushed through Peridot's chest as pain flickered in the rookie's eyes at her question and she wordlessly slid her hand back into its glove, familiar tightness helping her nerves calm down and settle. She fought with herself as she watched the woman rise from the bed with a now sad smile, took a deep breath when she heard her wishing her a good night and mentally slapped herself when she once again grabbed Lapis' wrist in attempt to make her stay. It worked but she still felt like she had to explain herself, so she did, staring at the floral pattern while tugging the woman back to bed.

"You promised."

The younger woman wordlessly disappeared beneath the sheets and only the shuffling of fabric and the shifting of the mattress told her that Lapis had done the same. The light was switched off by the dark-skinned agent before she shuffled closer, placing a hand on the blonde's hand like she had done a few hours before.

"May I?"

She heard the nod more than she saw it, the pillow's fabric rustling against Peridot's cheek at the motion before two strong arms wrapped around her, smooth skin pressed against her not so smooth one. ' _I won't judge you._ ' Peridot bit her lip and put her hand above the one resting across her stomach, pressing it against her in a desperate need for physical contact.

"After I lost them", she started, swallowing when she heard her own voice crack and felt the tears forming in her eyes, "my fingers, I mean, it took me many months and lots of operations and therapy to regain some sense of functionality in what I had left. I couldn't hold a pencil for longer than a few seconds, couldn't cook for myself, couldn't even use the bathroom alone."

Something hot and wet dripped down unto her arm but Lapis didn't care, ignoring the now quiet sobs leaking through Peridot's speech in favour of running a soothing thumb over her stomach.

"The first thing I was able to hold on to was a razor blade that I found in my mum's cabinet. I wasn't even thinking about it but I just felt so exhilarated that I was finally able to do something with my hands again that it almost gave me a rush. One I was only able to recreate by putting the blade to use. It felt like it was the only thing I could do with them, hold the blade and cut myself with it. Gave me a sense of achievement that now sounds absolutely incredulous."

The blonde took a moment and a breath before blinking away some of the tears, aware of the noticeably female body pressed up against her back despite the emotional rollercoaster she was on right now.

"I am not sure if I should be upset with you or thanking you for letting me drink so much that I literally just shared my deepest secret with you."

She heard a faint chuckle from the taller woman behind her, sleepiness audible in her voice as she nestled closer and mumbled into the back of Peridot's neck.

"And here I thought your deepest secret was that no one has kissed you yet."

Unlike before her heart was now beating against her ribs in excitement instead of anxiety, tear-stained face turning towards Lapis as she felt her lean over her side slightly. Completely overwhelmed by what to do the blonde only squeezed her eyes shut and gave a soft whimper in anticipation before the lips she had thought to crash down on her own planted themselves on her cheek softly before she felt them against the tip of her ears. Another chuckle followed before Lapis settled behind the emotionally drained scientist again, comfortably draping her arms around her smaller form in close-eyed content.

"The tips of your ears really do get as hot as they look when you are embarrassed, you know?"

"I think I'll settle with feeling upset for now you clod."

Lapis grinned and gave Peridot a final squeeze before drifting off into dreamland, exhaustion claiming her mind with unyielding ferocity.

"I'll reserve the actual kiss for our first real date, you big nerd."

* * *

It has been way too long and I honestly put it off for even longer, but alas here it is: third and final chapter.  
Now, it isn't exactly how I pictured things going, there are still things questioned at the end (some might be able to figure it out though) and all in all it's just something I wrote in two days in a couple hours but I still hope I won't disappoint! Read and enjoy and by all means, leave your thoughts I highly appreciate it :)

No phrase of the day this time peeps, sorry. Too tired :(

 **If you liked it, please** **REVIEW**.

No flaming please.


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